Summary
Contents
Subject index
“The strengths of this text are the breadth of theories covered; the integration of gender-related topics— family, work, religion; the use of substantial quotes from primary texts; the consistent inclusion of methodological issues…. I have no doubt that it will find a solid position in the field of theory texts.”
--Kathleen Slobin, North Dakota State University
A concise, yet surprisingly comprehensive theory text, given the range of ideas, historical context, and theorists discussed. Unlike other books of the type, Contemporary Sociological Theory focuses on how the pivotal theories contributed not only to the development of the field, but also to the evolution of ideas concerning social life.
Sociocultural Change: Evolution, World System, and Revolution: Service, Wallerstein, and Skocpol
Sociocultural Change: Evolution, World System, and Revolution: Service, Wallerstein, and Skocpol
Sociology has a tradition of macro theories of change. Nineteenth-century examples include Herbert Spencer's and W. G. Sumner's evolutionary theories, Durkheim's discussion of society's change from mechanical to organic solidarity, and Marx's analysis of the need for a revolutionary transformation. In the mid-twentieth century Parsons and the functionalists argued that change does take place, but it is usually minimal and with a view to reinstating the former equilibrium as closely as possible.
We focus in this chapter on three twentieth-century perspectives on change, using one U.S. theorist as the center point of each discussion, but bringing in others as needed. We begin with Elman Service ...
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